Here is whats going on:
My workouts are suffering. They have been for two (or so) months. My cycling power numbers are stagnant, my run is hit or miss, and my swim is where it's been - maintenance mode until I can get more time to train. Oh, and my weight is well over where it should be. I'm tired, worn down, and in a rut. Not a good place to be in early May. So - how the hell did I get here? It's simple - too much with too little recovery. I recently got bloodwork done and it was good. I'm sure some hormones are off, but at that time (Jan), things were good.
I also had a bad race in Oceanside and injured myself. I have since healed, and feel as though I dodged a bullet with that one. I do think that my body was giving me a warning sign.
Anyways, here's what I plan to do to make 2016 successful:
- A few smaller, local races: This is to get into a positive groove with some low key racing to start the season right. I'll do these, then start back with bigger racing at the Boulder 70.3 in one month.
- Skip Ironman Texas: I have had some on/off feelings about this race over the past few months. We didn't know if the bike portion would be intact on race day. These thoughts, along with being worn down make it easy to see I need to sit this one out.
- Go into Boulder 70.3 fresh and ready to get back into the pro side of racing. Focus on the swim until then and make sure that I am swimming to my potential at this point in the year.
- Finish the school year: Finish working the school year and focus on what I will do for the next 365 days. I am going to take the upcoming year to focus on the sport. I will focus on racing, as well as coaching and other opportunities that I can find within triathlon. I will still work in the schools, but I will be making some changes on the work front.
That's the early/pre-season update. I'm hoping that this is the best year yet and would love to take this season well into November. Cheers to all racing down in Texas tomorrow.
The injury I sustained in Oceanside was visible. This was two weeks after the race - Left shin/ankle was still very swollen. I never stopped running on it, but played it safe and was able to fully heal and run at speed within four weeks.
